Rescue Slides from Jonathan Hart of J. Hart 9- 10 GCSAR Scotland All HMK students salute all Emergency 9-11 Services workers. All Grand County Fair Search and 9- 21 Dave and Barbara Rescue booth
9- 26 GCSAR Working with Search Dogs Nancy May
10- 8 GCSAR Leadership and OIC: The Reality of it Rex Tanner 10- 24 GCSAR Mock Incident TBerry 11- 12 GCSAR CPR 11- 26 GCSAR CPR 12- 10 GCSAR Winter Rescue Eric Trenbeath 12- 21 S. O. Party
Incident Tally by Month 2002- J-0 F-3 M- 9 A- 8 M- 10 J-12[42] J- 5 A-7 S-7 O- 9 [70] 2001- J-0 F-2 M- 5 A-11 M- 8 J- 6 [32] J- 6 A-3 S-2 O- 2 [45] N-5 D-1 [51] 2000- J-2 F-4 M- 9 A-13 M- 14 J- 7 [49] J- 3 A-2 S-9 O- 7 [70] N-0 D-0 [70] 1999- J-1 F-1 M-15 A- 4 M- 11 J- 8 [40] J- 6 A-9 S-9 O-13 [77] N-7 D-2 [86] 1998- J-0 F-1 M- 5 A-18 M- 15 J- 3 [42] J-10 A-2 S-4 O- 9 [67] N-3 D-1 [71] 1997- J-4 F-6 M-10 A- 8 M- 16 J- 9 [53] J- 4 A-6 S-5 O- 9 [77] N-8 D-0 [85] 1996- J-4 F-5 M- 2 A-12 M- 14 J- 7 [44] J- 5 A-5 S-5 O- 6 [65] N-9 D-4 [78] average: [43]
02- 55 9- 6- 02 Door to door Explaining Bad Water Something happened to part of the local culinary water system that turned the water "bad." We organized with the Fire Club and went door to door to notify the citizens NOT to use their water except to flush the toilet. "Oh my," most said. "We've already had dinner and done the dishes." Samples were sent up-state to the lab and as of Monday 5 pm, nothing has been said. Comments: Responders: Rex, TBerry, Sam, Jennie, Bego and some Fire Club folks
Flash Flooding in Canyonlands National Park- Hummer as boat- frightening ride for a family
On Saturday, September 7, at approximately 4:15 pm, the Island-in-the-Sky District of Canyonlands National Park was buffeted by high winds and torrential rains that deposited 3/4" of water in under one hour. There were extensive backcountry road wash-outs accompanied by flash-flooding. The flash flooding was the most significant flooding documented in the history of the Island in the Sky. At approximately 6pm, a family of four from Provo, Utah, was driving up Taylor Canyon. The four wheel drive road winds in and out of a dry wash. At approximately 6 pm, the family saw a four inch curb of water approaching them down the wash. Within a minute, the water had swelled up to mid-level of the windshield of their 1998 Humvee and shortly thereafter was 10' deep. At peak flow the wash was estimated to be flowing at approximately 2,000 cubic feet per second which is nearly double the current flow of the Colorado River. The wash was approximately 300' wide at peak flow with a water temperature of approximately 55 degrees. The vehicle floated downstream for approximately 4 miles over the next 15 minutes at which time the family was able to exit the vehicle, get to shore, and seek shelter in an alcove. During this process, the father stated he had to swim with his 5 month old and 3 year old sons tucked under his arms after exiting from a door while his wife was exiting through a window. Later in the night their cries for help were overheard by campers nearby, who took them in for the night, and gave them a ride out to the Island in the Sky Visitor Center the following morning. The vehicle was recovered and is totaled. Vehicle loss is estimated at $60,000. The 100 mile White Rim backcountry road is currently closed to through traffic. A damage assessment is being conducted on the backcountry road system. Cost estimates for the repair of extensive damage will be completed. The Shafer Trail may take several months to repair and will remain closed until repairs are done. It is hopeful that repairs at Upheaval Bottom, Taylor Canyon and Lathrop Canyon can be completed within the next week. Ranger Paul Downey was the Incident Commander. [Steve Swanke, RISKY]
GCSAR Rock Rescue training 9- 10- 02 "The Red Mist" by Jonathan Hart One of the best classroom rock rescue trainings ever. And a bonus hit for EMTs regarding all the latest on treating cold injuries in the cold. Jonathan Hart from a Scottish Rescue Team spoke and showed slides. Their group, formed in 1906, is the most active in Scotland, in all 4 seasons but mostly in the winter cuz of the popularity of ice climbing on Ben Nevis. The highest mountain around, it suffers from much bad weather from fast, wet North Atlantic storms. Conditions and weather change wildly. They deal out cold injuries alot. Says most accidents can be traced back to "bad navigation." He's in America, staying with and studying a bunch of rescue groups and their methods all over the country. Bloody hell.
9 - 11 A "Thank You" from the HMK school-- A short and incredibly emotional Thank You to All The People in Emergency Services gathering. The STUDENTS at HMK read some poetry, sang a song and presented some art work with student signatures to each department head. Principal Margaret Hopkin spoke briefly. We observed a moment of silence in remembrance to the Ground Zero sadness. Moab's finest presented the colors. Comments: Students helping the adults feel good. Totally awesome. Responders: Sheriff's Office, Moab Police, American Legion, Search and Rescue, the National Park Service, BLM Fire, Hiway Patrol, Veterans of Foreign Wars, Moab Valley Fire Dept. Probably 60 or so of us, all dressed up.
02- 56 9- 11- 02 Body Recovery Colorado River GCSAR was requested by the Sheriff's Office to drive the River Rescue Boat to recover a body that had washed ashore along the river near Rocky Rapid. Comments: Ick. Turns out he had a small caliber bullet hole in the back of his head. Oh my..... Responders: Bego, Sam, Nancy, Shalla
02- 57 9- 12- 02 ATV Rollover Pritchett Canyon Mostly a replay of 02- 30 in May except this was an ATV rollover. About 1:30 pm. Two guys out ATV riding when one crashes over backwards at the Rock Pile. It was a jeep party just ahead of them that continued out to the south until they could get cell reception with dispatch- about 3:15 pm. We were paged, EMS was paged and Careflight put on standby. Frank got LZ coordinates from Well's book. We responded shortly later with EMS and Careflight was asked to launch. As with 02-30, Careflight got there first cuz getting even an ATV up Pritchett Canyon is difficult. The same pilot landed in the skid tracks he'd made in May (a statement about how much rain we've had). As they were packaging the subject, our folks arrived to help carry a thousand feet to the helo. Comments: Jennie Tuft figured out a pizza delivery to ICP- nice. As usual, there is no communication OUT of Pritchett. Sam and Dick went in from the south in the Bronco and got clear to Yellow Hill but no commo there either. The team in Pritchett HAS to wear earphones, have a radio on "NLET" channel and use the helo as communications relay. There just isn't any other way. Persuasive argument for a satellite phone. Responders: Rex, Bego, Jeremy, Lee, Jim D, Sam, Dick, Dave, Frank, Kevin, Shaun Gary Haynes brought out Jonathan Hart, the Scottish rescue guy visiting locally.
9 - 13 Fri Homecoming Parade Traffic detail with Moab City Police. Next time we need at least 6 of us to show up, please.
English: (from Reader's Digest) It is wrong to ever split an infinitive. Contractions aren't necessary. The passive voice is to be avoided. Prepositions are not the words to end sentences with. Be more or less specific. One word sentences? Eliminate. Who needs rhetorical questions? Exaggeration is a billion times worse than understatement.
"It isn't pollution that's harming the environment. It's the impurities in our air and water that are doing it." - George W. Bush.
02- 58 9- 16- 02 Evidence Search Investigators Brewer and White had 8 of us out looking for "anything" that might be connected with the the body recovered in incident 02- 56. Nancy and Shalla. Grid searches thru the Tammys and brush. Hiking in mud along the shorelines (really high quality river mud tho), cruising the shores on the Jet Skis (both of which had problems). Underwater metal detector. Comments: Nope. The river is quite a bit higher than it was on the day of the event. Responders: Matt, Sam, Dick, Dave, Nancy, Shalla, Lee (a retired gentleman), Bego Shaun, Jeff Curt Brewer and his boy White, Steve Brownell
02- 59 9- 19- 02 Rock Topples, Canadians Topple with it Determination Towers At first it seemed like this was a climbing accident on Determination Towers. No. Mr. and Mrs. Ross from Alberta clambered up onto a small summit of rock about 30 feet high for pictures. The rock crumbled from under them and down they went. Mrs. Ross scraped her arm. Mr. Ross tumbled, breaking some ribs and banging his head. His friends loaded him into an SUV and they drove out a ways toward US 191. After a bit, the pain was too much and they called for help. Comments: Responders: Brad, Rex, Sam, Bego, Dave, Jeremy, Kent, James Ward
Grand County Fair at the Spanish Trail Arena Sept 20, 21 Dave and Barbara Fincham built and staffed our Search and Rescue booth. Thank you big. Sheriff Nyland, Happy Morgan, Rex Tanner and many others politicked like mad. Yummie pies and jams, Lois Nelson's Afghan, a JC Borders pastel, loads of cool stuff.
02- 60 9- 21- 02 Biker Down SRBT Broken collar bone in the weird gully at the head of the Abyss. In and out. Slick. Rock and Roll. Comments: It is perhaps better if we stage our stuff in the parking lot. More room, safer, level, etc. Responders: Nancy, Sam, Jeff, Bego, Shawn, Lee, Jim G. Guest appearance by Russell Pierce.
02- 61 9- 28- 02 Biker Down SRBT This guy went over the handlebars and came down straight on his head. Bad ju-ju, at least it was in sand. The cell phone call out mentioned tingling in his arms if he moved his head. We arrived with the EMT. In about a minute the EMT requested the Careflight helicopter cuz of the nerve thing and swelling at the base of the skull. Oh -oh. Comments: A week later we learn that he compressed C1 and C2 in a bad way. Responders: Dick, Dave, Rex, Bego, Dean, Shawn, Sam
Canyonlands National Park (UT) Rescue; Life Saved
On the afternoon of September 23, rangers were notified that a 56 year old male mountain biker from Norwich, Connecticut, who was on a multiple day backcountry bicycle trip, was in distress - ill, vomiting, unable to urinate, diminished consciousness - on the remote White Rim Road. A medical helicopter was dispatched and transported the patient to Grand Junction, Colorado. The patient had drank approximately 2 gallons of water during the morning ride. He was suffering from water intoxication, which probably would have been fatal without rapid transport, clinical evaluation and follow-up treatment. The rescue was aided by the biking party possessing a mobile telephone and GPS unit in the Canyonlands backcountry. [Steve Swanke, Incident Commander]
02- 62 10- 6- 02 Bag and Rope on Wall: Analysis Somebody saw a rope hanging on the vertical sandstone wall across the river from Goose Island and thot it "looked suspicious." Watched it all day. It didn't move. After dark, we responded in the River Rescue boat. Just nicked a rock passing Canyonlands By Night. Hiked up to the base of the wall to discover someone's "project." In other words, two climbers were working on a route and took the day off, leaving their ropes hanging. This is quite common on first ascents. Comments: Responders: Matt, Sam, Bego, Jeff, Steve and the ubiquitous Park Ranger Haynes.
02- 63 10- 11- 02 Klondike Bluffs Temporarily Lost Biker (TLB) This 74 year old dude with a hip replacement took a wrong turn and got lost down a drainage. He cell phoned 911 and we responded. By the time we got to our usual staging area he had called dispatch to say that he'd found his way. Shortly later, there he was, pedaling up the road, passing all the younger bikers. Comments: Responders: Rex, Sam, Bego, TBerry, Jim D, Lee
02- 64 10- 11- 02 "We're on the Kokopelli Trail but we don't know where?" A weak cell phone call from 2 young lads. Said they were definitely ON the Kokopelli Trail but didn't know where, that they were north of Fisher Valley, east of 128 and the river and they were up on a high point. Clues. We responded up the dirt from Dewey with 4 wheelers and a Bronco. Two 4-wheelers were sent out on the piece of single track (really an old 2 track) that crosses Cottonwood Canyon. Later we were all cruising over the top and down toward the top of Rose Garden Hill. There they were. Turns out, they turned uphill in Fisher Valley instead of down Onion Creek. Comments: As usual, they blamed the "guidebook." So much for personal responsibility and navigation. However, the maps in that particular guide are the worst for concise. Said they thought they could do a 5 hour ride in 2 hours. Responders: TBerry, Jennie, Sam, Jeremy, Bego, Nancy, Shawn
02- 65 10- 12- 02 Amasa Back Biker Crash 10-22d before it got going. Subject walked out after cutting his eyelid in a fall.. Comments: Responders: Rex, Frank, Nancy, TBerry, Lee, Jeremy, Jim G
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02- 66 10- 13- 02 Recovery A Boundaries Problem
First, a few words on the boundaries. (1) Was this in Grand or San Juan County? Turns out, by GPS, the subject was in Grand County by about 160 feet. (2) Was the subject on BLM land or National Park land? (3) Did we need 500 or 600-foot ropes? 600 by a few tens of feet said Nancy the surveyor.
Tragedy struck a group of Colorado University students camped at Island in the Sky near the head of the west fork of Shafer Canyon. Late at night as the campfire burned low, Evan Guillaume, 20, a student from the University of Colorado, picked up his sleeping bag and walked off to find a place to sleep. It was the last time he was seen alive. When his friends missed him the next morning, they went looking. They were unable to locate him. Later, they spotted a sleeping bag on the talus below. It was then that they phoned 911 to report a missing camper. TBerry, Alyssa and Louis Manson went to investigate. GCSAR was paged out for a search. Shortly, TBerry called us back to the shed for stand-by. A few minutes later, TBerry said to come out with all the rope and cliff equipment. We had a good idea, at that point, what our assignment would be. In addition, Rig Master A224 loaded up ("...and about 4000 feet of rope.") from his SAR cache. Nine GCSAR members and 3 NPS employees then proceeded to rig a 600-foot lowering and raising. It was by the book except for one rarely-used technique. We used a vehicle winch with a soft grab onto the haul line. Gary Haynes became Ops and everybody buzzed around their multiple jobs. Lots was rigged, learned and taught in a few moments. This first then that, that line of force goes there, this material is strong enough for the task, change that knot to a different one because, make the generator and lights work for after sunset, edge pro and the perfect application for the Arizona Vortex. A thousand thoughts all running together...with safe completion of the difficult task as the ultimate goal. After awhile, it all came together in a safety briefing. Specific tasks were assigned, concerns aired, communications and safety reviewed. A rescuer was lowered down the cliff to the subject. 45 minutes later, rescuer and subject were raised to the top using the electric winch on the front of a truck. A similar system had been used during Reed Thorne's class. Comments: The overland route to this subject at the bottom of the cliff would have taken hours and hours of toil and many more folks. It was decided that the rope way was both faster and safer in the larger picture. Responders: Steve Young, Gary Haynes and A5lyssa V2an S5chmus from the Natural Park Service. Rex, Matt, Frank, Sam, Nancy, Bego, Lee, Jim G, Jennie from GCSAR Louis Manson and Steve Rotor White from GCSO
Canyonlands National Park (UT) Falling Fatality
Evan Guillaume, 20, a student from the University of Colorado, fell to his death from the west rim of the Middle Fork of Shafer Canyon in the park's Island in the Sky District early on the morning of Sunday, October 13. Guillaume had been camping with a group of students, and was last seen sitting near his tent on the canyon rim at approximately 1:30 a.m. When members of the group awoke in the morning, Guillaume was nowhere to be found. His friends searched for him, but without luck. A member of their party then called 911 on a cell phone and rangers were sent to the scene. Ranger Steve Young spotted Guillaume's body at the base of the vertical cliff after a brief search. Guillaume had fallen almost 500 feet. A multi-agency team of rescuers from Grand County and the National Park Service completed the technical body recovery in darkness. An investigation is being conducted and the body is in Salt Lake City for an autopsy. Ranger Steve Young was incident commander. [Submitted by Steve Swanke, District Ranger]
02- 67 10- 17- 02 Broken Cowboy Book Cliffs- Bogart and She Canyons Must have been a cell phone call from the top of Sego Canyon at the Indian Reservation fence. Deputy Brent Pace raced up there to talk to the RP. We responded as did Care Flight from Grand Jct. Coordinates were generated on the computer for Care Flight using the geographical names. GCSAR units and 2 Thompson First Responders staged our stuff at the bottom of Sego Canyon. We were to wait to see if Care Flight could land and service the subject. Yes, they did. Comments: Would have been a long access problem with ATVs, way up in the Book Cliffs. Responders: Lori, Rex, Frank, Bego, TBerry, Jeff, Sam, Mark
02- 68 10- 18- 02 Lost Biker Old Arth's Road- Head of 7 Mile Barry called on his cell phone to announce he was lost. He had left his car "at the first parking lot north of Moab" which turned out to be the lower Gemini parking near the Bar M on Hwy 191. His intention was a short loop ride as he started at 4 pm. At 10 pm, in a bright moon, he said he was not on any road but was pushing his bike, "headed for two buttes, one larger than the other." This had to be the Monitor and Merrimac. He had passed a sign that said TNT. Huh? TBerry said this was a drilling company sign but it's location was unknown. Said he was maybe 2 miles from a road, meaning 313. We told him to get ON a road and head west, moon on his left shoulder. We sent out Nancy in her truck, down from 313 to the drill pad, then north toward the 7 Mile rim in the area called Arth's Pasture. TBerry and Jim Davis went out on ATVs from MP 16 on 313, into the head of 7 Mile. Jon Sering 13 B 61 joined in the search in the Arth's area. Meanwhile, Sam and I stayed up on 313, watching everyone's lights appear and disappear, doing maps and cell phones. Barry still had some cell phone battery left so periodic phone calls were made to see if he was on a road yet or had he seen any of our lights. Yes and no and yes. Awhile later he called us to say he'd found a brass cap survey marker that said T 25 S, R 10 E, Sec 26, quarter corner. A quick glance at the map revealed that he meant R 19 E. So we told him to stay there. The ATV guys established their position relative to his and drove right over to him. Sam and I picked him up in my truck. Comments: Neither the 7 1/2 minute maps nor the Moab West map have any of the maze of roads in the Arth's Pasture / Head of 7 Mile marked on them. The helpful publication here is Jack Bickers book 40 Grand Trails from the Deadhorse Point Road. The map in here isn't that detailed but it does show all the roads. Barry probably would have come out somewhere on 313 on his own in a couple of hours, max tired and out of water. Responders: TBerry, Jim D, Nancy, Sam, Bego, Jon 13 B 61
02- 69 10- 20- 02 Broken Biker Fat Tire Festival Downhill Race Moab Rim Trail George crashed on the down hill, breaking his tib and fib. Race officials sent an EMT down and called 911. We responded up the Portal Vistas Chairlift with the EMTs, a Stokes litter and the wheel. Over the top and down 1/4 mile to the scene. There were many helpful bikers to pull the Stokes back uphill to the top of the chairlift. Comments: Some of those downhillers are in the air more than on the ground. Responders: Bego, TBerry, Nancy, Dean, Shawn, Sam, Dave, Barbara
02- 70 10- 26- 02 Broken Biker Way up ta the Gold Bar Rim A perfect afternoon for riding ATVs up to a high rim, but no. A cell phone call to 911 said a biker had a broken clavicle and some kind of low sugar problem. We discussed CareFlight from Grand Jct, Arches Helicopters locally and our usual ground attack of ATVs. One more phone call to the subject. He said he was in a private jeep, traveling out, bye, bye. Comments: Responders: Matt, TBerry, Dick, Jennie, Nancy, Shawn, Bego and Alicia
Natural Bridges National Monument Rescue
On the afternoon of September 12, a park visitor reported having seen "two elderly hikers stuck in a flashflood" at the bottom of White Canyon. They were last seen "standing chest deep" in a swift current in the vicinity of Sipapu Bridge. The park had received over one inch of precipitation since 8 a.m. that morning and was experiencing heavy monsoon storm cells and lightening strikes at the time of the report. A rescue team led by chief ranger Ralph Jones entered White Canyon approximately ten minutes later, while maintenance chief Larry Turk remained on the canyon rim in order to maintain line-of-sight radio communications. Flood conditions forced Jones' team to traverse high-angle rock above the riverbed while searching for the hikers. Jones located the pair - two German nationals in their early 60's - on the opposite side of the river, approximately a quarter mile downstream from Sipapu Bridge. They were wet and cold, but otherwise in fair condition. Rangers were able to extricate the husband by fording floodwaters and roping up for the climb out of White Canyon. His wife was much weaker, however, and had to ford the river three times in order to reach easier terrain upstream. When she began having trouble negotiating wet slickrock with her footwear, a park rescuer swapped out her own hiking boots for the woman's tennis shoes. After safely returning to the Sipapu Bridge parking lot, the two non-English speaking visitors profusely thanked their rescuers with hugs and handshakes. Park visitors are cautioned to avoid trails linking the canyons' bridges during periods of precipitation. Due to language barriers, the couple had missed both verbal and signed information to that effect. The incident has prompted staff to evaluate additional strategies for improving cross-cultural communication. [Submitted by Greg Dudgeon, Superintendent, Natural Bridges NM]
Black Canyon Of The Gunnison National Park Follow-up on Search for Visitor
The body of 49-year-old Martin Larsen was found at the bottom of Chasm View on the park's steep and rugged north rim shortly before noon on September 19. Larsen was reported missing on September 16 and had been the subject of a search that involved air-scent dogs, a helicopter and a 15-person NPS search team. A technical rock climbing team was dispatched to the area on September 19 to descend Cruise Gully. Crew members discovered Larsen's body. It's estimated that he fell about 2,000 feet. [Phil Zichterman, Public Information Officer, Black Canyon of the Gunnison NP] Comments: One of the dogs was Shalla. Nancy tells an interesting story about this search.
Grand Canyon National Park Ranger Injured in Backcountry Accident
On September 17, ranger Chuck Sypher fell approximately 50 feet while hiking in a remote area of the park while on backcountry patrol. Sypher was on the fourth day of a seven day backcountry patrol of the Kanab Creek drainage in a remote western part of the park. Ranger Michael Grate and a volunteer accompanied him. Grate was able to summon help via satellite phone. Initial reports indicated that Sypher had sustained serious head injuries. Two ranger/paramedics responded on the park helicopter. An Arizona DPS rescue helicopter and a Classic Lifeguard air ambulance were also dispatched. Rangers reached Sypher's location at the bottom of a narrow canyon and found him conscious, alert and in stable condition. He was extracted from the canyon via helicopter short-haul, then transferred to the Classic Lifeguard helicopter and flown to Flagstaff Medical Center. Sypher miraculously sustained only lacerations, bruises and head wounds and was released from the hospital the following day. There were no fractures or internal injuries. Rangers were able to respond quickly due to mandatory requirements that satellite communications be employed on backcountry patrols and that rangers on all highly technical patrols be accompanied by partners. [ Sherrie Collins, Incident Commander, Grand Canyon NP] Comments: Satellite phones and short hauls out of canyons. Yes and yes.
Grand Canyon National Park (AZ) Helicopter Short-Haul Rescue
On October 26, Margaret Evans, 61, sustained a possible ankle fracture while hiking on the remote Nankoweap Trail. The Grand Canyon Field Institute guide who was with her provided immediate care and used a satellite telephone to contact the park. Due to the extreme exposure of the trail and lack of a safe helispot nearby, rangers decided to employ a short-haul rescue procedure to extract her. NPS Helicopter 210 was used to short-haul her to a staging helispot two miles away. Involved in the operation were pilot Borden Miller, spotter Mark Murray, ranger- IEMT Greg Moore, ops chief Sean Cox, and incident commander KJ Glover. [Submitted by Ken Phillips, SAR Coord]
Yosemite National Park (CA) Technical Rescue from Lost Brothers Climbing Route
On the afternoon of September 28, park dispatch received an emergency cell phone call from a man who reported that his climbing partner was injured on the Lost Brother on the south wall of Yosemite Valley. Paul Minault, 55, and his two partners, all from the Sacramento area, were climbing the historic (and seldom climbed) route when Minault took a leader fall and ended up hanging injured several feet above his belayer's stance. Minault's partners cut him lose from the ropes, secured him at the belay stance, and placed the cell phone call to get help. Rangers and YOSAR team members climbed about 1,000 feet above the Valley floor to Minault's position and began medical treatment. Minault was lowered about 100 feet to a more secure location on a ledge just as darkness fell. It had been raining periodically all day and the heavy cloud cover prevented using a helicopter short haul to evacuate Minault. The extremely loose rock made a lowering operation very hazardous. Minault's condition was stable, so SAR tech/parkmedic Keith Tampa and YOSAR team member Micah Dash stayed on the cliff through the night, monitoring his condition. Early the next morning, the park contract helicopter short hauled Minault off the cliff to El Capitan Meadow. He was then taken by ambulance to the Yosemite Medical Clinic, where he was diagnosed with a pneumothorax and a broken hip. He was flown out of Yosemite Valley by helicopter ambulance for further medical treatment. [Ed Visnovske, Park Ranger/Incident Commander]
New Device Translates Dogs Bark into Short Phrases
Harvard University recently presented the 2002 IG Nobel Peace Prize to Keita Sato, President of Takara Co., Dr. Matsumi Suzuki, President of Japan Acoustic Lab, and Dr. Norio Kogure, Executive Director, Kogure Veterinary Hospital, for promoting peace and harmony between the species by inventing Bow-Lingual, a computer-based automatic dog-to-human language translation device. The Search and Rescue world will be surprised to learn that if this tongue-in- cheek award is true, dog barks can be translated to Japanese. A microphone on the dogs collar transmits to a handheld radio which then translates the dog bark into the appropriate Japanese phrase on a display screen. Perhaps in the future if human-speech can be translated to barks and coupled with GPS radios, we can do without dog handlers all together (ok, they still might be needed to drive the dog to the search.) It's worth visiting the site at least for a good laugh. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/2285509.stm BBC article (in English) that describes the device in some detail.
Websites for Man-Trackers Here are two websites courtesy of the man-tracking world. http://members.aol.com/varfee/mastssite/ C.A.S.T. (Footwear & Tire Track Impression Evidence) http://www.identicatorinc.com/pindex.html - product = LE25 Inkless shoe print - the chemical pad and reactive paper shown at SARTI training